The painting shows the 13 founding members of the CPC who went aboard a boat on the Nanhu Lake in Jiaxing city, Zhejiang province, in 1921 to hold a meeting, which officially marks the establishment of the CPC.

According to He, inspiration came to him when he read an inscription by Dong Biwu, a founding member of the CPC, in a memorial hall. "The inscription is a sentence from the ancient Taoist classic Chuang Tzu, and it states that great causes may begin with something negligible. It inspired me to consider how to view the historical event, and how to combine my own impression of the event with the national memory of it."

Art critic Yin Shuangxi explains the symbolism of the work. "The boat and people on it are drawn in a true-life and specific way, with contrasting colors to create a strong visual impact," Yin says. "Meanwhile, the cloud and surface of the water are depicted in an abstract way to show the changeable environment. It means though the environment was complicated at that time, the CPC members remained resolute, stable and confident of their revolutionary cause."

Xue Jijun from China Media Group said at the opening ceremony that "every work shown in the program depicts the original aspiration of the CPC, and the works combine to be a long historical painting".

"The program will impress the audience both artistically and historically," he says. "It will lead the audience to view the history of the CPC from the angle of fine arts, remind Chinese people to remain true to our original aspirations, keep our mission firmly in mind and strive to realize the Chinese dream."

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